Reviews

“The performances are expert, fluent and expressive. The sound, recorded at idyllic Cornell College is honest and pure. Sollberger has not apprehended Dvorak, he has embraced and extended him, like his transformation of the familiar double-stopped violin solo in the last movement of the Quartet into something which shines briefly with a Midwestern farmer/cowboy harmonic flavour.” Laurence Vittes, Gramophone (February, 2013)

“A captivating CD. Spillville draws directly upon Dvorak’s String Quartet. The entire work is an inviting mixture of textures, from soaring lyrical lines to strongly articulated passages that require excellent chamber music playing and communication among group members. Boland and Dowdall, along with violist Anthony Devroye, are clearly collaborators of the highest caliber, who remarkably match articulation and style whole playing three instruments with completely disparate means of sound production. Boland’s flute sound is sweet and slightly woody, with excellent intonation and expressive lyricism.” Rebecca Johnson, Flutist Quarterly (Summer, 2013)

“The music on this disc reveals a wonderful sense of Midwest America. This virtuoso ensemble, led by flautist Jan Boland, with John Dowdall on guitar, is highly respected in North America, and these performances convey with authority and beauty the moods and story-lines of the music.” Lisa Nelson, PAN (London) (December, 2012)

“The two pieces (Spillville and Perhaps Gilead) . . . are well played by the Red Cedar musicians. The two works stand together as very agreeable examples of a thoroughgoing post-modernism that Charles Ives would certainly recognize and appreciate. I think you will too.” Grego Applegate Edwards, Gapplegate Classical-Modern Music Review (October, 2012)

Gaspard Kummer

Chamber Music for flute, guitar and strings

Fleur de Son Classics:
FDS 58008

Recorded June 2010 in King Chapel, Mount Vernon, IA
Released April, 2011
Distributed by Naxos of America

Reviews

“Red Cedar Chamber Music is a fine collection of players of period nineteenth-century instruments. These excellent players produce gorgeous sounds and play this delightful music with elegance, affection and great musicality.” Robert Bigio, Flute (London) (December, 2010)

“This is a performance on period instruments. The playing is excellent, and the tone qualities are charming. The intonation is spot on, and so is all the technique. Flutists Jan Boland and Douglas Worthen carry this program, playing as one.” Gorman, American Record Guide (2011)

Fireflies

Chamber Music by Andrew Earle Simpson

Fleur de Son Classics:
FDS 57985

Recorded June 2007 in King Chapel, Mount Vernon, IA
Release date: January 2009
Distributed by Naxos of America

Reviews

“The Red Cedar Trio plays this music with elegance and impeccable skill. All three musicians have a warm, rich tone that never has even a hint of edge—a refreshing change of pace when so many musicians, flutists especially, seem to enjoy blasting away all the time. This is my second encounter with this ensemble, and I enjoyed it just as much. I hope they continue to foster and perform such interesting music.” Christopher L. Chaffee, American Record Guide (July, 2009)

“Red Cedar Chamber Music has a reputation for creating and promoting quality new works, and the music on this CD is no exception. All three of these works are presented in the best possible way through the very high standards of performance and production of this CD.” Carla Rees, The Flutist Quarterly (Summer, 2010)

“There are three inspired, colourful, beguiling sets of pieces on this CD. The performances are vibrant and full-blooded, capable of ironic humour as well as exuberance and melancholy, as this unusual music demands.” Alison Ulren, Pan (London) (June 2009)

“All of the payers are first rate and perform as a perfectly refined ensemble, but the playing of violist Miller is quite remarkable, his tone is crisp and precise, devoid of the tubby sound which in lesser hands can afflict the instrument.” Albert Kunze, Soundboard, (Vol 36, no. 3, 2010)

“Fireflies flits and darts between genres and centuries, lighting the way for listeners to experience old themes in vibrant, new surroundings. This Red Cedar Trio recording features innovative and imaginative music by Andrew Earle Simpson, played with obvious delight.” Diana Nolen, The Gazette (September, 2009)

Johann Nepomuk Hummel

Chamber Music at Schonbrunn

Fleur de Son Classics: FDS # 57983
Recorded October 2006 at the United Church of Monticello

Reviews

“Flutist Jan Boland’s sure technique and sweet tone are perfection itself, and her pure intonation on the wooden 11-keyed ‘simple system’ flute is just remarkable. She makes her musical expression with a subtlety of dynamics and shading of tone; she does not need the cloying and continuous vibrato used today to gain the audience’s attention. The color and clarity of the higher tuning of the terz guitar gives Dowdall’s tone a quiet yet balanced brilliance that matches the fortepiano nicely and is never lost in the thicker textures. Throughout, fortepianist Theresa Bogard holds the works firmly together with great rhythmic vitality, a steadying hand, and flowing and well-directed melodic lines. All the members of the ensemble have grand technique and a cantabile style that allows the listener to sit back and bask in this sunny and romantic performance.” Jerrold Pritchard, The Flute Network (January, 2008)

“Red Cedar Chamber Music sound almost as if they are dancing as they play this charming and impressive music, particularly on their delightful rendition of the Potpourri. Boland is particularly to be noted for her ability to wrestle sweet and beautifully in-tune sounds from the rather difficult nineteenth-century flute. Very highly recommended.” Music Library Association Notes (June, 2008)

“…outstanding presentation. The musicians masterfully perform the Grande Serenade en Potpourri on authentic period instruments, achieving an unusual texture not found in many recordings of music of this era.” Kimberlee Goodman, The Flutist Quarterly (Spring, 2009)

“. . . superb recording. The music is light and eminently entertaining. The recording is exceptional, with great depth and breadth.” Bauman, American Record Guide (March/April, 2008)

“The most attractive feature of the disc is the set of authentic instruments used, especially the rather mournfully warm wooden flute of Jan Boland; Red Cedar Chamber Music plays enthusiastically throughout.” James Manheim, All Music Guide

“. . . a very convincing display on early nineteenth-century performing style. The playing of the ensemble is immaculate, with balance, phrasing and dynamics all occupying top priority. These factors alone ensure that this disc makes delightful listening and a fascinating glimpse into the sound-world of turn-of-the-eighteenth-century Vienna. Jan Boland’s mastery of the eleven-keyed flute is impressive. She brings to it a broad dynamic range and an excellent control of intonation. This group certainly deserves to have a secure future. They make the most of Hummel’s delicious sonorities.” Richard Stagg, Pan (London) (June, 2009)

“[Hummel is] brilliantly performed by Red Cedar Chamber Music on period instruments. The performance of Seibelt’s La Tempesta di Mare (in the middle of the Grand Serenade Op. 66 no.2) on the fortepiano by Theresa Bogard is just stunning.” Alison Uren, Pan (London) (March, 2008)

Czech-Inspired

21st-Century Chamber Trios

Fleur de Son Classics:
FDS 57974

Recorded June 2005 in King Chapel, Mount Vernon, IA.
Release date: March 14, 2006
Distributed by Naxos of America

Reviews

“Spillville Variations is a group-commissioning project almost dazzling in its simplicity: get a dozen or so Iowa-born or Iowa-based composers to provide one short variation each based on a theme from the Scherzo of Dvorak’s American String Quartet, an 1893 piece that just happens to have been composed in the largely Czech-populated town of Spillville, Iowa. This project has obviously struck a rich compositional vein. The composers gathered here rise to the occasion and do justice to both their honoree [Dvorak] and their performers. One could hardly imagine, in fact, a collection that keeps its ensemble close while putting them through such a full range of maneuvres. From the respective canon and fugue of Peter Hamlin and Peter Bloesch to the dance inspirations of Lyle Dockendorff’s ‘Spillville Waltz’ and Lucas Gullickson’s ‘Facing West’, these miniatures balance distinctive gravitas with a certain lightness of touch. From the modernist heights of Harvey Sollberger’s ‘Dvorak and the Scarlet Tanager/his ‘damn bird’’ to the bluesy depths of Pat Smith’s ‘Spillville Blue’, no reference is too esoteric to evoke or too low to riff on. From beginning to end, this collection teases the ear but delivers the kind of musical pay-off that all light music should strive for.” Ken Smith, Gramophone, London (2006)

“We would that all chamber music was played so sensitively and exquisitely. Boland’s flute tone is clear, sweet, and lyrical; [full of] deft shadings of color and nuance and eloquent phrase endings. I cannot leave this review without commenting on the warm tone, impeccable intonation, and sure technique of violist David Miller. He balances and blends the sound of the flute and guitar so sympathetically and musically that the ensemble melds into an integrated whole. Prominent and dashing guitar solos reveal John Dowdall’s virtuosic technique through the characteristic and brilliant figurations.” Jerrold Pritchard, The Flute Network (2006)

“For Spillville Variations, the Trio elected a theme from Dvorak’s American String Quartet in F Major, and commissioned 15 composers each to write one variation. The result is a delightful collage, or one might say collision, of diverse musical styles and inspirations, from serious contemporary music, through blues, soft jazz, Klezmer, and, if I’m not mistaken, heavy-metal rock, all beautifully played by world-class musicians. . . . it really works!” Peter Nothnagle, Peter’s Picks (November, 2007)

Three Guys Named Mo

Trios for flute, viola and guitar.

Fleur de Son Classics FDS 57969

on period instruments
Recorded August, 2002 in King Chapel, Mount Vernon, IA.
Release date: April 2005
Distributed by Naxos of America

The Magic Flute (arr fl vla gtr)The Bird Catcher [listen]Within These Holy Bounds, A Girl or a Wife?, With Men Who Feel Love, March, Such a Delicate Flute Tone

W.A. Mozart

Reviews

“The Red Cedar Trio plays this music with elegance and ease, never overplaying. They achieve a wonderful balance as an ensemble. As the melodies bounce around between instruments, each comes to the forefront with clean, graceful sound. If you want music that will make you smile, find this disc.” Christopher L. Chaffee, American Record Guide (2005)

“The CD is really wonderful. Three stunning artists join in perfect harmony to produce salon music at its best. The ensemble is so gorgeous that it is obvious this trio thinks with complete unanimity. All three performers are excellent. They play with delicate articulation, charm and conviction. American flute player Jan Boland, playing on a ten-keyed instrument of 1830 by Joseph Ziegler, demonstrates perfect technical control and interpretive qualities of the highest order.” Ann Cherry, Pan (2006)

The Red Cedar Collection

American Music for Flute & Guitar

Fleur de Son Classics: FDS 57960
Recorded June 2002 in King Chapel, Mount Vernon, IA.

Reviews

“Jethro Tull eat your heart out when it comes to the solo flute blues piece Fish are Jumping by Robert Dick. Boland’s playing gives a cool rhythmic groove with fantastic articulation and bends, and I love the train like harmonics. In the guitar solo pieces, Dowdall gets a chilled back feel going during his solo pieces of Charlie Byrd. Based on 12 bar patterns he shows off a few cool licks in between a rhythmic blues vamp. I have very much enjoyed this CD. The playing is excellent and expressive. Both players are tight together with the ensemble and their interpretations are outstanding.” John Couch for indie-cds.com, Australia (2006)

“The playing and interpretations by Boland and Dowdall are just stunning in their richness, clarity, expressiveness and ensemble. The overall effect is the kind of brilliance and diversity that holds the listener in thrall.”Jerrold Pritchard, The Flute Network (2004)

“First-rate music in lovely performances recorded to perfection. …the pairing of guitar and flute gets a fine airing. The duo really can swing.” John Story, Fanfare (May/June 2004)

“Excellent ensemble. Both Boland and Dowdall have a warm, pure tone.” Johnson, American Record Guide (March/April, 2004)

“This interesting CD grew out of an innovative commissioning project. . . and features a range of styles and influences, from modal, improvisatory pieces to Copland-inspired works. The playing throughout is of a high quality, with a natural sense of ensemble.” Elizabeth Green, Pan (London) (March 2004)

Vintage Viennese

Beethoven & Matiegka on period instruments

Fleur de Son Classics: FDS 57945

Recorded August 1999 in the Cedar Rapids Museum of Art.
Release date: 2000
Distributed by Naxos of America

“Elegant, charming and beautiful. A terrific recording in terms of musical pleasure and performing excellence. The overall sonority…is simply lovely. The performers are obviously totally committed artistically…their ensemble skills are excellent, and their attention to detail is exemplary. The sense of jocularity from all three players in both works is refreshing.” Stephen Waechter, The Guitar Foundation of America Soundboard (Summer 2001)

“The first impression on hearing this disc is of a mellow and appealing tone-quality.and well-balanced texture. The playing is always beautifully phrased and.technically flawless — the intonation problems that beset so many exponents of period instruments are wholly absent here.” Brenda Dykes, Pan (London), (December 2002)

“All three performers are top rate; this is an instructive and imaginatively programmed CD.” John Sunier, Audiophile Auditio, (January 2001)

“…music that should please most listeners with its playfulness. Boland’s flute, in particular, has a wistful character. This CD will appeal to anyone who enjoys the small pleasures afforded by chamber music.” Raymond Tuttle. Review Index 2001

“The ensemble’s performance is elegant. Impeccable historical style…will draw the listener into the intimate ambiance and mood they create. The recording is exceptional in clarity and presence. The pieces are at once charming and profound.” Jerrold Pritchard, The Flute Network (2001)

Recorded for the first time, rare flutes and guitars from the Musical Instrument Division of The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. Read more about the project and the instruments. The following instruments were on loan from The Metropolitan Museum of Art for this project.

Reviews

“I have long been a fan of Jan Boland’s elegant musicianship, and it is here in evidence in every notes she plays. She and the excellent guitarist John Dowdall have used a collection of instruments from the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Jan Boland is joined by her daughter Amy in some Haydn duets played on a pair of crystal flutes by the remarkable Parisian maker Claude Laurent. These beautiful instruments must have cost a sizable fortune, and they sound remarkably good, too. It would have been easy for a recording like this to be gimmicky, but the performances are excellent and the music is a joy to listen to, and that’s surely all we want.” Robert Bigio, Pan (London) (2000)

“The Bolands handle the flute with remarkable control and finesse, making some highly expressive music in the process. Dowdall’s facile guitar work offers both sensitive accompaniments and a gentle haunting sound. The vocal quality of these flutes is quite striking, particularly in such selections as the Foster melodies.” Schmidt, American Record Guide (September/October, 1999)

“I am enraptured listening to Jan Boland’s new CD Crystal to Gold. Jan has a real affinity for the music and instruments and plays with sensitivity and musicality of the highest order. The beauty and focus of her tone belies any claim that constant vibrato is needed or appropriate for this music. Crystal to Gold joins a small but distinguished set of recordings of period flutes.” David Dahl, Flutelist (1999)

Reviews

CRITIC’S CHOICE: “Chamber music should be just like this—, bonding and conversational. One of the most enchanting discs I have heard in a while. It’s quietness and inventiveness will force you to listen. Period instruments are used, and for once they sound like something you an imagine people of the time actually sitting down and listening to. All three instruments are soft and subtle. Ms. Boland’s flute is warm, rich and faultlessly played. Mr. Dowdall Dowdall’s guitar is the ever-present background _ supportive and highly-flavored. David Miller’s viola stands out alike the start string it really is, sweet and singing, with technical impeccability.” American Record Guide (Nov./Dec. 1998)

“The players on this disc give every impression of enjoying themselves hugely and their enjoyment shines out from every note. Jan Boland … and the two string players use period instruments. The playing is excellent. No allowance needs to be made for the early flute, which is exactly as it should be. Jan Boland makes a beautiful sound on her old flute, free of affectation and of the overwhelming vibrato that spoils so many performances by modern flute players. This is some of the most enjoyable music-making to have graced my home in a long time. Delicious!” Robert Bigio, Pan (London) (December 1998)

“Matiegka’s music is a delightful addition to any classical music collection, rendered thoughtfully and beautifully on period instruments by Jan Boland, David Miller and John Dowdall.” Oonagh Sherrard, indie-cds.com (2006)

“The performers have placed considerable and appropriate emphasis on historically informed techniques. Their playing leads to an entirely satisfying balance.” John Hayard-Warbutron, Music & Vision (April, 1999)

“All three performers are top rate; this is an imaginatively-programmed CD.” John Sunier, Audiofile Audition (January, 2001

Repertoire

Music from the Social OrchestraJennie’s Own Schottisch Village Festival Jig Old Folks at Home Old Folks Quadrilles Eulali Jeanie with the Light Brown Hair Come with Thy Sweet Voice Again Tioga Waltz Gentle Annie Anadolia

Stephen Collins Foster
(1826-1864)

Home Sweet Home

Gaspard Kummer
(1795-1870)

from The Evening HourIl BacioCarrie LeeDelsarte WaltzPestal or Maniac WaltzTrab Trab GallopCruel War QuickstepDo they Think of Me at Home?Ellsworth’s Funeral March

Septimus Winner
(1827-1902)

Auld Lang Syne

Governor’s Greys Schottisch

Marie J. Jones

Beautiful Dubuque Waltz

John William Kothe

De Soto Schottisch

Reviews

“The playing is eloquent in its clarity and unfussy simplicity, and is captured on a clean and airy recording. Boland and Dowdall’s art is an informed music-making that vividly and hauntingly conjures up a moment in American history.” William Zagorski, Fanfare (September, 1995)

“The music on this disc is all simple, unprofound stuff, but therein lies its appeal. The Boland-Dowdall Duo perform this material with just the right kind of light touch. They succeed in doing what I think is one of the most important tasks of period-instrument performance: to transport the listener back in time. Of course, it is also possible to enjoy this disc from the purely instrumental standpoint: two fine performers fully in command of their instruments and captured in realistic, intimate sound.” C.B. Continuo (February, 1995)

“This is all pleasant stuff and easy on the ear. Jan Boland specialises in early flutes and is playing on a flute with 11 keys by Stephan Koch (c.1820). John Dowdall is playing a 19th century gut strung guitar. My family and friends, both musical and unmusical, have enjoyed listening to this disc, partly because of the music but even more, I suspect, because it sounds as though there is a real person on the end of the flute and moreover someone who is having a good time. On hearing such musical and technically competent playing with such a beguiling sound I began to wonder how the Boehm flute ever caught on. Certainly a recording worth having.” Dennis Clark, Pan (London) (1996)

Reviews

BEST DISC OF THE MONTH (June 1993) “Another stellar disc has been released by the American Duo. The artists perform in their customary manner, that is to say, superbly. Everything is simply splendid.” Alte Musik Aktuel, Regensburg, Germany (January, 1993)

“Elegant and entertaining. Boland’s flute sound is full of warmth and without a hint of the shrillness sometimes heard on a modern flute. Boland’s phrasing is natural and beautiful. Dowdall achieves a delicacy and warmth not often heard from larger, modern guitars. Their impeccable, balanced performances gracefully capture the period music.” Dee Ann Rexroat, The Gazette (July, 1992)

Reviews

BEST DISC OF THE MONTH: “Jan Boland and John Dowdall have successfully accessed works of the classical period. The result is marvelous; [the music] sounds facile and light without the slightest trace of sobbing excess of senile pathos. The interpretation is very convincing, impressive for its simplicity and sensitivity.” Robert Strobl, Alte Musik Aktuel, Regensburg, Germany

“A must . . . Jan Boland has an excellent fund of breath; her two wooden flutes are a silvery delight. John Dowdall plays {Sor etudes} most poetically.” Fanfare

“Rarely have I heard a recording of such elegance and sonic charm. Jan’s flute has an absolutely captivating timbre, helped of course by the great recording, but the intonation, phrasing & articulation The intonation, phrasing kept the disc on my player all week.” Dr. John Schneider, KFAC-FM, Los Angeles

“The disc is a masterpiece. Boland and Dowdall’s playing is a remarkable example of perfect musical understanding. The somber flute solo Roslin Castle is devoted to a vintage 11-keyed flute by Stephan Koch that proves itself totally tantalizing. I must confess total gratification. One of the best serious recordings of 1988.”Les Zacheis, The Gazette, Cedar Rapids IA

“Perfection.”John McGrody, WOSU-FM, Columbus

“The Boland-Dowdall Duo is the foremost flute and guitar duo performing 19th-century music on authentic period instruments. Particularly sensitive to the nuances of these early instruments, the performers exhibit a very healthy balance between familiarity with their instruments and research into performance practice of the period. Their sounds blend together almost poetically–the recording quality is exceptional.” The Blue Note

“Executed with technical aplomb and a sense of fun.” Alison Melville Continuo (1990)